


I'd Rather Be Freddie Kreuger Than Cinderella

by AsagiStilinski



Series: Y-G-October 2018 [12]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Magic, BAMF Mutou Yuugi, Babies, Background Relationships, Covens, Cute Kids, Flirting, Fluff, Fluff and Drama, Halloween, Halloween Costumes, Haunted Houses, M/M, Magic, Rituals, Tone Shift, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Witches, flirtatious Yugi, shy Atem
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-12
Updated: 2018-10-12
Packaged: 2019-08-01 05:58:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,141
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16279082
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AsagiStilinski/pseuds/AsagiStilinski
Summary: "Believe me, you'd be doing me a favor, everyone in my group has sort of... coupled off except for me, spare me the loneliness, be my date?"Oh... oh Atem's heart was pounding... he was stunned silent for a second there, until Aya finally caught his bangs and yanked on them, thus bringing him back to the present"Y-Yes, yes, I would love to be your date, absolutely,"Day 12 of Y-G-October 2018





	I'd Rather Be Freddie Kreuger Than Cinderella

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Finaiarel](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Finaiarel/gifts).



> This one is a little different than what I've been posting for this challenge http://horrificmemes.tumblr.com/post/177941943723/its-that-tiiiime-just-like-last-fall-im-giving lately, but I saw the cutest kids when I was Halloween shopping a few days ago and for "Magical" I really wanted to do something cute... but with a bit of an edge, I hope you'll stick around and enjoy the weird ride!

"What do you think? I'd look pretty nice with fangs huh?"

He didn't expect an answer, ofcourse

In fact, if his four-month-old cousin _did_ answer, he might just have something of a small stroke

But that wasn't going to stop him from talking to her anyway, the way she looked at him with those big blue eyes full of wonder and curiosity, mouth open, totally stunned- apparently by his mere existence, as it were- was well worth any funny looks he might get

"Hm, but what if I end up not needing fangs? Ofcourse I know what you're thinking, _fangs make everything better_ , and you're right, but I might not be able to wear them if I have a mask on,"

He pouted at her, a little disappointed, now reality was kicking in and he was starting to fret about his ... less than grand costuming prospects

"Maybe the solution is to just not have a head at all, hm? Then it won't matter what I do with my face,"

"Well I wouldn't consider that, if you don't have a head, the world would be deprived of hearing you baby-talking, wich is tantamount to a crime,"

Ah.... someone was calling him out

Well crap

Face officially turning red, Atem glanced over his shoulder and- _oh no he's cute_

"Ah... you um... heard that, did you?"

The man behind him- shorter and paler than himself, with bright violet eyes and an incredibly amused expression- just smirked at him

"I think half the store heard you, but it's ok, it's cute,"

"Oh, well in that case, thank you very much,"

Just for that, he'd kiss the baby's cheek- a reward for helping him look _cute_ rather than _mortifying_

The baby squealed, reaching out to grab at Atem's hair- probably to yank on it- and only narrowly avoiding it as he managed to duck out of the way of flailing fingers

She'd get ahold of his pretty blonde bangs sooner or later he knew, it was just a matter of delaying the inevitable at this point

That seemed to make the cute stranger laugh, his eyes sparkling even more as he watched the two of them

"First Halloween huh? Exciting, what are you two dressing up as?"

"Unfortunately I haven't the foggiest, I was only allowed to bring her here on the condition that I _not_ buy her a Halloween costume, her father would _murder_ me if I took that away from him,"

He only wished he was being dramatic....

"Strict husband?" the stranger guessed

"I wish; strict _cousin_ , I hate to inform you but this little angel isn't mine, I'm just a lowly babysitter, watching her for the afternoon wile my cousin and his wife are at a business meeting, Seth told me that if I bought her so much as a headband he'd _hang_ me,"

He wished he didn't believe him

But he did

"Sounds like he's a pretty involved parent,"

Atleast the stranger thought it was funny

"Oh he's the absolutely _worst_ , or atleast he will be until I have my children, I'm going to outdo him in every way once I have my own to spoil,"

The stranger clicked his tongue, shifting the basket of Halloween decorations he was carrying to his other hand and tilting his head playfully

"Well whoever your spouse is, they're pretty lucky,"

Atem winced, now it was his turn to shift a little, moving the baby to his other arm as he held his left hand out

"I wish I could agree, but I am _woefully_ unattached, my rings are just for decoration I'm afraid,"

"Now that's truly tragic," the stranger mused with mock seriousness, holding his hand out towards Atem

"I'm Yugi, by the way,"

"Atem, and the apple of my eye here is Aya," he replied with a soft hum, giving Yugi's hand a gentle shake

"Wow, sounds like pretty names run in the family,"

"Mm, probably, I've always been fond of my cousin's name, and his wife Kisara- ... oh... oh you meant me, didn't you?"

Given the bright, joyous laugh.... Atem was willing to say yes

"I meant you, but it's good to know that your cousin and his wife follow the trend,"

Atem wasn't even sure how to respond to that, he kind of wanted to think that Yugi was flirting with him, but he wasn't arrogant enough to just assume so, and he was dreadfully afraid of being wrong and ruining an otherwise perfectly pleasant conversation

"Have you decided on a costume yet?" he decided to ask instead

"Sadly no, I was hoping that coming here would spark something for me but unfortunately I just came away with more decorations,"

"Ah.... it appears that we're in the same boat," he noted with a quiet wince, glancing down at the basket at his feet

"And to think, Halloween is barely a week away..." Yugi sighed longingly

"I know, I have the terrible feeling that Seth is going to rope me into another family themed costume... wich wouldn't be too bad if _he_ was choosing the theme, but everytime there's a subject for debate between he and Kisara, he snaps like a twig,"

"Mmm, that's too bad, I take it from your tone you aren't a fan of her theme?"

"Alice In Wonderland, I love my cousin-in-law but personally I'd rather go with Seth's idea,"

"Wich is?"

"Hannibal,"

Yugi's mouth opened, eyebrows raised, but he looked a bit amused

"Well that's... definitely a stark contrast,"

"Yes, and as they need to get Aya's costume soon.... I have a feeling the breaking point will come sooner rather than later,"

"Probably... not a cute fan I take it?"

"I wouldn't say that, I do write children's books for a living after all, I just... prefer to do something scary for Halloween, or atleast a bit macabre, I'd settle for the Addams Family but we actually did that two years ago,"

"Mm, again, we're in the same boat, my freinds are always 'suggesting' group costumes and I'm the only horror junkie in the group, they've been hinting around at a fairytale theme this year and I have the sinking feeling that I'm somehow going to get turned into Little Red Riding Hood,"

Atem so _badly_ wanted to ask how that feeling came about, but he resisted the urge

"... Creepy Little Red?"

"I wish,"

"It's a shame we can't just band together as the horror freaks of the world and solve our mutual problem," Atem mused with a sigh, wich, to his surprise, seemed to spark something in his companion

"That.... may not be such a bad idea.... how anchored are you to your Halloween plans?"

"I don't have any past five P.M., my cousins own a bookstore, they're putting on a party for the kids in the afternoon and I'll be up there reading for a few hours, but after that I'm probably on my own, unless my freind Mana drags me out to another party..."

He loved Mana, but he hated parties, he just... wasn't really a party person, he found them to be draining and exhausting

... _At best_

"That works out great then, do you like haunted houses?"

"Adore them,"

~~Even if he was a bit of a scaredy cat~~

"Great, my boss puts on the best haunted house you've ever seen every year, let me pick you up after the reading, I'll take care of the costume problem,"

Well that was an .... odd offer, though not an unappreciated one

"Are you sure? I mean, I wouldn't want to intrude-"

"Believe me, you'd be doing me a favor, everyone in my group has sort of... coupled off except for me, spare me the loneliness, be my date?"

Oh... oh Atem's heart was pounding... he was stunned silent for a second there, until Aya finally caught his bangs and yanked on them, thus bringing him back to the present

"Y-Yes, yes, I would love to be your date, absolutely,"

"Great, I'll pick you up at six at the Blue Dragon on Wendsday then, see you Atem, bye-bye Aya~"

Atem was left love-struck and dazed as he waved to Yugi, watching him disappear around a corner.... and suddenly realizing something....

He had never told Yugi what bookstore his cousins owned, or what time they would be closing, only how long the Halloween party would last

Maybe he knew Seth and Kisara already...?

Oh well, it was a question for a different time, for now, he needed to concentrate on getting Aya home before naptime, lest he feel his cousin's wrath

 

~+~

 

Surely enough, at around four o'clock on Halloween, someone came into the Blue Dragon who didn't quite blend in with everyone else

He glanced up breifly as the bell over the door rang, and felt his heart skip a beat when _Sadako_ walked in- complete with blotchy pale skin, unreasonably long black hair, and somehow the appearance of being soaking wet despite not dripping on the floor

He even stumbled over his words a little mid-reading, atleast... until "Sadako" lifted the black hair back a little and he could see Yugi's peacefully smiling face beneath the wig

Heart once again beating normally, he tried to focus on reading for the remaining hour, instead of being caught between feeling flustered over his date being there... and feeling startled everytime he looked up and saw a creepy ghost girl watching him from the corner

He didn't receive any form of explanation until five o'clock

"Sorry for spooking you, I didn't think the costume would be this good,"

"Oh believe me, it's _great_ , you really had me for a moment," he promised with a bright smile

Yugi brushed the wig back again, showing off a gentle smile as he placed a few sections of hair behind his ear to keep it out of the way

"Sorry for coming early, I just wanted to hear you read... and I see you were right about the Alice thing,"

Pausing, Atem glanced down on instinct at his Red Queen costume, offering a shrug as he finished putting away the books he had been using earlier

"It isn't so bad, I can add blood later to make it better,"

"Or you could just go with the costume I have in mind for you," Yugi offered back

"Oh, you really have one?"

Now that actually took him by surprise

"Ofcourse, you didn't think I was lying, did you?"

"Ah... more... exaggerating ... I suppose..."

Yugi shook his head, smiling sweetly again- it was a weird contrast against the spooky make up

"I managed to escape Red Riding Hell by suggesting couple's costumes, I'm not throwing that away,"

"Ah... Sadako is a couple's costume?"

" _Ish_ , you'll have to come with me if you want to see how,"

"Now you've intrigued me, so I suppose I have no choice," Atem teased, reluctantly drawing away from his date

"Just allow me to finish helping Seth close down, then I'm all your's,"

Atem didn't see it, but there was definitely a spark of excitement in Yugi's eyes at that promise

"I'll hold you to it,"

 

~+~

 

"Admittedly, I was sort of torn between this, or some sort of serial killer combination, like Freddie and Jason, but in the end, I couldn't resist the opportunity,"

"No no, it's lovely, I never would have thought of this!"

Yugi really was a creative person- and someone who was remarkable with guessing people's sizes, incidentally

"You're not just saying that?"

"Not at all! And I'm beginning to see the similarities, creepy psychic girls raised by abusive mothers who eventually lose their minds and go on a killing spree? Why haven't more people thought of putting Sadako and Carrie together in some form?"

"I don't think most others put that much thought into it," Yugi laughed, watching in delight as Atem stepped out of the bathroom-turned-temporary-changing-room in his new costume

A classic prom dress, blonde wig.... and about two gallons of fake blood soaking him head to toe

It actually compared rather nicely with the soaking-water theme of Yugi's costume

"And what a shame that is," Atem noted with a smirk, looking his partner up and down before staring down at his own costume

"Look at us, we could be sisters,"

That pulled another laugh from the smaller man, shaking his head playfully and holding his hand out for his date

"Are you ready for the scare of your life?"

"Ready as I'll ever be," he promised, heart jumping slightly as Yugi took his hand and looped their fingers together

From there, things became a little.... odd

A little... different...

Yugi was still all smiles, still a little flirtatious, but it was almost as if he had something else on his mind now

He lead Atem through the- admittedly, quite good- haunted house without jumping or flinching even once, and although Atem supposed he could understand that if he had already frequented it- it was his boss who built the thing right?- there was just a strange air around him from then on

The looks he gave Atem were deeper, more longing, Atem could feel something lurking beneath the surface, he just couldn't pinpoint what it was, but he never had time to focus on it, everytime he started questioning it, another jumpscare sent him for a loop and sent his heart racing again

This went on for probably half an hour, however long it was that he was in that haunted house with his date, and he never could seem to recapture the sweetness and butterflies that they'd had before

Maybe it was because of the haunted house

Maybe Yugi just processed fear differently than he did

Fear made people act in strange ways after all, so maybe....

But something about that just didn't seem right

It wasn't until they were nearing the end of the haunted house that things started to go from a little strange, to downright _terrifying_

"This is the last room, you think you can handle it?"

"I'll be fine," Atem promised with a teasing huff, though he couldn't resist the urge to give Yugi's hand a bit of a tighter squeeze, sucking in a deeper breath, trying to steady himself

Yugi only nodded softly before steering him down the correct hall and into a dark room

And when he said dark, he meant _pitch. black._

There was no light anywhere, he felt completely blind, and it stayed that way until he heard a sound akin to someone snapping their fingers

Then there was light- candlelight

_Tons_ of it

And the room was .... _weird_

It wasn't the typical, over-the-top "scary" setting he had come to be used to in this place, no, this was too simple

There was a single, large table in the middle of the room, candles surrounded every corner, there was a pentagram outlined in chalk beneath the table and all manner of other symbols and runes decorating the small space, but not much else, and when he turned around to ask Yugi about it, he found that his date was no longer wearing the incredibly realistic ghost costume from earlier

Instead, he was dressed in a simple, formal black robe- one that resembled something.... _ritualistic_ and witch like

It was made of thick, heavy fabric, lined in red, with a hood covering Yugi's hair

And for a moment, for a long moment, Atem simply stood still and ... waited for an explanation

Waited for _something_

But nothing happened, all that changed was Atem noticing, suddenly, that the door behind them was closed now- and that's only considering it could even be called a door at all, it was more like a section of the wall

Quickly, Atem spun on his heel, his shoes clicking against the stone(?) ground as he took a step back, dread beginning to fill his stomach as he caught sight of a small group of other people, all dressed identically to Yugi, but he couldn't see any of their faces, they were all obscured by the robes

What....

What the hell was this....?

Had he gotten himself into some kind of cult!?

"Don't be afraid," Yugi said suddenly, drawing Atem's attention back to him all of a sudden

"Atem, we aren't going to hurt you, we're only going to help you,"

Help him?

Help him!? With _what_!? Losing his sanity!?

"Then why do I feel as though I'm about to become a sacrificial lamb?"

"You won't," Yugi assured him quickly, taking a step closer and gently placing a hand to his face, stroking his thumb against his cheek

"That will never happen again, you have my word,"

Again? AGAIN!?

Just as Atem was about to scream questions about what Yugi meant by _again_ , the smaller man pulled his hand away

His _clean_ hand

But that wasn't possible

Atem was _soaked_ in blood, he had been dripping wet this entire time, even though that sort of defied logic- much like Yugi's phantom water seemed to- he had frequently checked and found that, without a doubt, the blood was always wet

Why would it be dry now?

Slowly, he placed a hand to his face, but felt nothing

He glanced down at his hands and found with alarm that not only were they no longer soaked in blood, but he wasn't even wearing the long pink gloves he had had on with his prom dress earlier

And when he looked down, he found the dress it's self was gone

Nothing seemed to be the same anymore, all of a sudden he wasn't dressed in his Carrie costume, he was in some sort of long, white gown....

What the ever loving fu-!?

" _Now_ ,"

Atem didn't even have time to react to that word, before he could, there were two pairs of strong arms around him, lifting him up despite his wild attempts at protest and setting him down on the table, flat on his back, arms by his side

And terrifyingly, try as he might to move, he couldn't- he was absolutely still

_Paralyzed_

"What the hell have you done to me!?"

"I'm sorry, I know this seems cruel, but you'll understand soon, this is the only way,"

He couldn't hold back the tears anymore, fear and panic, anxiety and confusion, they were all put in a big blender inside him and coming out in tears that rolled down his cheeks, watching as Yugi snapped his fingers, a bowl from the corner of the room suddenly levitating and rising towards him

What was happening...?

What was happening?!

His breathing was heavy, his heart was racing, he really felt like he was about to pass out, and yet....

Yet, part of him wanted to stay awake

Wanted to see, to know, what they were about to do to him, and although part of him was begging to just allow his mind the favor of going blank, he knew that he needed to see this through, he needed to know exactly what was happening to him- no matter how badly it hurt

Yugi leaned down, kissing his forehead gently before pulling away and dipping his fingers into the bowl in his other hand, pulling them out with thick, red liquid dripping down his skin

Atem watched fearfully as Yugi carefully painted the liquid- blood, he was sure- on Atem's face- his forehead, his cheeks, his chin

In symbols that Atem couldn't recognize through touch alone

If he could have moved, he would have certainly been shaking by this point

And then.... then Yugi started speaking some language that he didn't recognize- much less understand

He was... _chanting_?

... _Praying?_

Something.... something..... and then, without warning, the candles all suddenly blazed atleast ten times more than they just had been, and before Atem knew it, there was a white hot sensation rushing through him, his body seizing and shaking against the table

The lights were all astoundingly bright all of a sudden

Bright lights, loud, ringing noises in his ears, heat all over him, and he just.... he just-!!!

....

....

.....

_"Atem?"_

Ahh.... it hurt....

_"Atem, sweetheart, can you hear me?"_

Slowly, he forced his eyes opened, locked on bright violet again, but this time... this time....

_"Yugi..? Meri...?"_

A smile- bright and adoring, like starlight, crossed Yugi's face as he leaned down and gave Atem a deep, loving kiss

"You remember me..... finally, finally you remember.... I'm so sorry it took me this long to find you again my love, there were some.... _complications_.... after you were taken from me, your magic was sealed off, I wasn't expecting that, it was pure luck that Mana and Mahaad managed to find you and alert me to where you were,"

He nodded slowly, shakily, forcing himself to sit up and putting a hand to his aching head, Yugi's arms wrapped around him securely, rubbing his back

"I don't remember everything... it's all blurry...."

"It'll bleed back together in time," Yugi promised softly, sitting down on the edge of the table and rubbing his partner's back

"I ... don't remember what happened... one night I was laying in bed with you and the next-"

"It's been a few months," Yugi interrupted suddenly

"Another coven vying for my power took you away from me when I had my guard down, a mistake I won't _ever_ make again... they sealed your powers, erased your memories... all they left you with was your name, thank the Goddess that Kisara found you wandering around and was able to install some temporary memories until I had the spell ready to bring you back to me,"

Ah... that was right... Seth and Kisara really were his cousins, but they had their own coven, Seth had been sharing territory with Yugi for the last few years, after the... _incident_... that had flushed their coven out of their hometown, Atem falling in love with Yugi had been a blessing like no other, the ultimate bridge between the covens, securing loyalty and solidarity to eachother in marriage

Atem had been content to give up his rightfull heirloom of supremacy to his own coven in order to join Yugi's, more than happy to give up his place as the leader to his cousin and act as a bridge between the two of them, Seth's right-hand and Yugi's bride, a perfect union to bring together two different covens from two different worlds, with vast expanses of magic- different magic that they could share between them, strengthening eachother, protecting eachother...

They had just started planning the wedding when all of ... _this_ happened...

"We don't know who it is yet," Yugi remarked, seemingly reading Atem's mind as he squeezed his hand

"But we're in the process of finding out,"

"I see," he mumbled back tiredly, glancing up at the small group before him, who had all removed their hoods and were waiting patiently for his acknowledgement

Yugi's coven, his _future_ coven

He supposed his own fellow witches were content to see him in the morning, they had had him for the last few months- mostly, anyway- and it was really Yugi's coven who should be hogging his attention tonight

Well... really, Yugi specifically

"You feelin' alright 'Tem?"

"I'm fine Joey, thank you," he promised softly, his attention shifting from the blonde to the brunette next to him

"Seto... this haunted house was your doing I take it?"

"Do you know anyone else who could pull off anything like this?" the other spat in return

Atem only shrugged peacefully, for once happy for the other's biting attitude, and turned his attention to Yugi again

"I'm sorry for being away for so long, my beloved,"

"Don't apologize, you know it wasn't your fault," Yugi promised with a shake of his head, gently cupping Atem's cheeks and stroking his thumbs against them

"We'll finish all of this, as soon as possible, then we'll have the wedding I promised you,"

A pause, a smirk

"And start the family I _also_ promised you,"

Atem exhaled, letting go of tension he hadn't realized he'd been holding onto, before wrapping his arms around Yugi and giving him a real, proper kiss

A kiss he hadn't been able to indulge in for months now...

"Get a room..." Seto hissed in irritation, successfully managing to bring Yugi away from the kiss

_Jerk_

"Oh we intend to," the smaller witch promised, hopping down from the table and gently pulling Atem down with him

"You two go enjoy Halloween, we'll take care o' all this," Joey promised with a thumb's up, earning a greatfull smile from Yugi in return as he shifted his focus back to Atem

"Come on Mou Hitori, let's go home,"

"Home...... home sounds lovely, my partner," Atem purred back, squeezing Yugi's hand as he allowed the smaller witch to start leading him out of the tent

"Oh and, aibou?"

"Hm?"

"Happy Halloween,"

He _definitely_ deserved the little shove Yugi gave him for that one


End file.
